“They won’t grant her sanctuary. Somewhere, sometime she will have to come out.”

“You know the safest place she could choose? Earth. How would that be for irony? If Ilanthe wanted her, the barrier would have to be switched off.”

Paula gave the knot of sine waves an approving look. She had known the Silfen paths reached through the Dyson Alpha barrier; Ozzie himself had told her. The idiot had actually visited Morning-LightMountain’s world after the Starflyer War was over. She supposed it was inevitable that the SI would know, as it had a long history with Ozzie. “Clever,” she said, “I wonder if we could get a message to her. Are you in contact with the Silfen Motherholme?”

“No. It doesn’t associate with the likes of me. I’m just a mechanical-based intelligence. I don’t have a living soul.”

“So we’d need a Silfen Friend.”

The SI’s projected knot of wiggling lines brightened slightly. “There aren’t many, and they tend to be elusive.”

“Cressida; she’s related to Araminta. They both have Mellanie as their ancestor.”

“That connection is tenuous even for desperate times.”

“Yes. And Cressida has dropped from sight. But I’d forgotten Silfen paths can reach through this kind of barrier. The one on Earth is supposed to start outside Oxford somewhere. I wonder if ANA can use it to get some kind of message out.”

“If it can, it will.”

“Yeah, and in the meantime … Do you have any weapons stashed away that can tackle the inversion core?”

“I don’t have any weapons,” the SI said in a stiff tone. “Stashed or otherwise.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

“Of course you do. You forget I am information. I operate within what could be classed a physical network, but that does not govern me.”

“There are a lot of human personalities downloaded into you. That must influence your standpoint.”

“There are a lot of human memories stored inside me,” the SI said. “There’s a difference.”

“Okay, so do you at least know what the inversion core is?”

“I managed to access sensors in the Sol system for a very short period between it emerging and the barrier going up. ANA still regards such actions as extreme trespass. I can’t tell you much other than it has an exotic nature. The quantum structure was effectively unreadable, it was so unusual.”

“So we don’t know what would kill it?”

“The deterrence fleet or the warrior Raiel might be able to. I can’t conceive anything else working. But Paula, that ship it left in was extremely powerful and fast.”

“I know. If Araminta calls Laril-”

“Paul and I will include you in the conversation,” the SI assured her.

“Thank you. And let me have a code for you, please.”

“As you wish.”

Paula watched the sine waves shrink to nothing as a new communication icon appeared in her exovision. A quick check with the smartcore showed the SI hadn’t attempted to infiltrate any of the ship’s systems. She hadn’t expected it to, but …

Her u-shadow opened a secure link to the High Angel.

“Paula,” said Qatux. “Our situation is not improving.”

“I understand the President has asked you to attempt to get through the Sol barrier.”

“He did. I don’t believe it is possible; however, I shall oblige his request. To do nothing for you at this point would be morally irresponsible. We will fly to Sol shortly.”

“The Raiel taking part in galactic events again? I thought that went completely against your ethos.”

“This is a very specific event, the one we have dreaded for eons. Our involvement is mandatory.”

“I believe the Sol barrier is based on the force field around the Dyson Pair. The Accelerators have been studying the Dark Fortress for a long time.”

“We suspected that was so. If true, the High Angel will be unable to breach the barrier.”

“What about a warrior Raiel ship?”

“I don’t believe it would fare any better, though there may have been new developments I am unaware of. The generator you call the Dark Fortress represents the pinnacle of our race’s ingenuity.”

Paula experienced a strange little frisson of relief at the statement. A very old puzzle finally solved. “Did the Raiel build the Dark Fortress? We always thought they were the same as the DF spheres at Centurion Station.”

“Yes. It is a unit from our Galactic Core garrison. They have several functions; the force field is only one.”

“You told us the Anomine imprisoned the Dyson Pair.”

“They did. We loaned them the units. We produced legions of them after our invasion of the Void failed. As your species correctly postulated, they are the galaxy’s final line of defense against a catastrophic expansion phase.”

“So the Raiel can stop an expansion phase?”

“That is something we will not know until the moment arises. The scheme was the best we could produce, but it remains untested.”

“Then it really is vital that Araminta doesn’t lead the Pilgrimage into the Void?”

“Yes.”

“I will do everything I can; you know that.”

“I know, Paula.”

“I may need help.”

“Whatever I can provide, you have only to ask.”

Eventually the forest gave way to a crumpled swath of grassy land that stretched away for miles to a shoreline guarded by thick dunes. The rich blue ocean beyond sparkled as the sunlight skipped across its gentle waves. Araminta smiled mournfully at the sight, knowing she’d never be able to run across the beach and dive into those splendid clear waters. The big quadruped beast she was riding snorted and shook its huge head, as if sharing her resentment.

“Don’t worry; the whole beauties-of-nature thing gets tedious after a while,” Bradley Johansson said. He was riding on a similar beast to one side of her while Clouddancer plodded along behind.

“After how long?” Araminta queried.

“Millennia,” Clouddancer growled out. “Nature produces so much that is worthy of admiration. Its glory never ends.”

Bradley Johansson pursed his round mouth and produced a shrill trumpeting sound. After a day and a half riding with the pair since they’d left the festival by the loch, Araminta had concluded this was his chuckle.

“Great,” she muttered. The fresh breeze from the ocean was invigorating, countering her falling mood. They were approaching a narrow fold in the land, one filled with small trees and dense scrub bushes. There was a pool at the head of the slope, producing a tiny brook that trickled away down through the trees. She reined in her mount just short of the water and swung her leg over the saddle so she could slide down its thick flank. It waited patiently as she performed her inelegant dismount. Bradley Johansson came over to help unstrap her backpack. She never actually saw him climb down, though she was sure his wings weren’t big enough to work in a standard gravity field.

“How do you feel?” he asked sympathetically.

“Nervous as hell.”

“Your spirit will prevail,” Clouddancer proclaimed. He was still sitting on his mount, tail curled up at one side, wings rustling in mild agitation. His head was held high as he looked toward the coast. If he’d been a human, Araminta would have said he was hunting a scent in the wind.

“I have to,” she said, and meant it.

“I am proud of you, friend’s daughter,” Bradley Johansson said. “You encompass all that is good and strong in our species. You remind me why I gave everything I had to save us.”

Araminta was suddenly very busy with the clip around her waist. “I’ll do my best, I promise. I won’t let you down.”

“I know.”

When she looked up, Bradley Johansson was holding a small pendant on a silver chain. The jewel was encased in a fine silver mesh. A pretty blue light was glimmering inside like captured starlight. He placed it around her neck. “I name you that which you already are, Araminta. Friend of Silfen.”